Boy Who Wanted to Be Handsome Dies After Surgery to Repair Face

Seven-year-old Gerald Fuentes wanted to be handsome and have a girlfriend. Instead, he died two days after surgery on his misshapen features without ever seeing the face he dreamed of.

Gerald, who had traveled from Peru to Chattanooga for the surgery, apparently had a stroke Saturday, doctors said Monday.

“A part of me died,” said Dr. Larry Sargent, lead surgeon on Gerald’s medical team at Erlanger Medical Center.

The 13-hour operation to correct Gerald’s misshapen face went smoothly.

“I told him he was so handsome he was going to be able to get any girlfriend he wanted,” said Judy Bellenfant, president of the Craniofacial Foundation of America, a Chattanooga-based nonprofit organization that arranges surgery for people with deformities and helps cover the cost.

Gerald’s eyes were about twice as far apart as normal. A cleft ran from the upper lip of his wide mouth to the bottom of his nose, which was oversized, flat and off-center.

His mother, Bella Fuentes, a teacher in Pacullpa, Peru, said in a statement: “Thank you for giving Gerald hope and joy as he looked forward to seeing his new face.

“I know that Gerald had the best doctors in the world. They did all they could and made his face look pretty.”